Terrorism is shared problem, we must all fight it united: Tharoor at 9/11 Memorial in NYC

An all-party delegation of Indian Parliamentarians, led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, visited the 9/11 memorial here and paid homage to the victims of the terror attacks, expressing solidarity and underlining that the world has to be united in the fight against the "shared problem" of terrorism.

- AGENCIES

Tharoor said that the visit to the 9/11 Memorial was in a spirit of solidarity and was a "very moving moment for us".

But it was also meant to send a very strong message that “we are here in a city, which is bearing still the scars of that savage terrorist attack, in the wake of yet another terrorist attack in our own country,” a reference to the April 22 Pahalgam attack.

He said that, unlike the US, India has had to endure a “very much larger number of terrorist attacks.

“We came both as a reminder that this is a shared problem but also a spirit of solidarity with the victims, who included Indians...It's a global problem, a scourge, and we must all fight it united. That was a very important message to convey,” he said on Saturday.

The delegation, which arrived in New York Saturday afternoon, visited the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in lower Manhattan and kept roses on some of the names of the victims etched on the Memorial Pool. A large number of members of the Indian diaspora were also present at 9/11 for the solemn event.

The all-party delegation will travel from New York to Guyana, Panama, Colombia, and Brazil before returning to Washington DC around June 3 as part of a diplomatic outreach aimed at projecting India's united and resolute stance against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

Other members of the delegation include Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) Bhubaneswar Kalita, Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) Milind Murli Deora, Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) Shashank Mani Tripathi, Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) Ganti Harish Madhur and former Indian Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu.